50 Books Real Simple Readers Love

Black Beauty, by Anna Sewell

To a girl in small town, USA, in the early ’90s, it was a magical look into another time, place, and perspective. It sparked my love of reading, animals, and history. —Rachel Miller

My dad started reading it to me and my little sister as early as I can remember. I’ve been a bookworm ever since! —Pam Mapp

I was 10 years old and couldn’t put it down. Loved this book, and it was my first real understanding that I could envision it all in my head. It was wonderful. —Donna Pfister Huntley

When I was about 5, my dad was reading Black Beauty to me. I got so worried about what happened to him that I had to spend the whole day finishing the last half of the book...and I’ve never stopped reading! —Emily Hanson

I read Black Beauty back in the 1970s. I was 8, 9, or 10. I didn’t realize then that books could take you to another dimension. —Kim Portalatin Gentile-Brown

I must have read it a million times between fifth grade and the end of junior high. —Chris V. Corliss